Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE HOLOCAUST, by CLAUDE HOUGHTON


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE HOLOCAUST, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: Before men loosed these iron gods of strife
Last Line: Beneath a canopy of alien stars?
Subject(s): Cruelty; Death; Dead, The


BEFORE men loosed these iron gods of strife,
Before the stars were from the darkness hurled,
I loved you in a flower-lit wonder-world,
I loved you, and through you I loved all life;
Then fell this dolorous night, unnatural, rife
With crimes unnumbered and black flag unfurled:
I lost you while the writhing phantoms curled
About each dream and slew each with a knife.

O when the day breaks and the shadows flee,
When life moves out of this red masque of death,
And all my soul breaks through her prison bars—
Then, my lost love, will you return to me,
Or will you sleep, all innocent of breath,
Beneath a canopy of alien stars?





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